10 Best Gaming Movies of all time

In the past few years, scores of casino and gambling movies were made and released. While some failed to impress the audience, some has broken records, got critically acclaimed around the globe. In fact, what we generally perceive of gambling and Las Vegas casinos are mostly gifted by these films. Presently, the casinos have changed a lot, some accept and pay in Bitcoins – checkout Bitcoin Casino Reviews at Slotozilla.com – to get an idea. But, the question is ‘Did the movies portray it right’? While seeking the answer to this important question we got a chance to bring up the 10 best gambling movies of all time.

1) 21

Released on 28 March 2008, 21 is American drama film based on a true story told in Ben Mezrich’s bestselling book ‘Bringing Down the House’. The movie follows around a bunch of M.I.T mathematic geniuses. Ben Campbell is M.I.T math major who got a chance to enter Havard Medical School, but sadly, he cannot afford to pay the big $300,000 fee. Circumstantially, he got introduced to professor Micky Rosa who secretly runs a blackjack group with 5 other students. Ben joined them, and together they started to visit the casinos and make millions of dollars.

2) Casino

‘Casino’ is a classic American crime drama released in 1995. It is based on Nicholas Pileggi’s non-fiction book ‘Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas’. The story trails around mobsters named Sam Ace Rothstein and his childhood buddy Nicholas Santoro or Nicky. They have just moved to Las Vegas to set in their mark. Ace operates Tangiers Casino on behalf of Chicago Outfit while Nicky wrings from the locals. You will find everything here; from greed, ambition, a power to betrayal making it a true epic. Definitely a must-watch!

3) Ocean’s Eleven

It is probably the most smooth and slick gambling movie ever filmed. It is a story of a scammer (Danny Ocean) who has plans to conduct the biggest heist of a lifetime. He wants to rob three major casinos: the Mirage, the Bellagio, and the MGM Grand which are owned by Mr. Terry Benedict, the biggest casinos owner. Danny assembles a team of eleven talented former colleagues for this mission. Danny decides to rob the casino vault on the night of a high-profile boxing match when it is supposed to house around 150 million dollars.

Executing such an audacious plan lacks realism. Nevertheless, it is one of the best flicks that shouldn’t be missed!

4) The Cincinnati Kid

Truly, it is an iconic gambling flick ever since its premiere in 1965. Eric Stoner, the Cincinnati Kid player by Steve McQueen, is a gambler who travels from one city to another for high-stake games and beautiful women. He has arrived in New Orleans and challenged a stud poker. Initially, Stoner gets an upper hand, but in the end, Howard cheats to regain his title. It is extremely popular among gamblers and gamers for depicting the game skills, intelligence required so accurately.

5) Rounders

Time for some stereotypical gambling movie! The 1998 American drama is a story of a very gifted poker player and law student Mike who went down $30,000 in Texas Hold’em to a Russian gangster. So traumatized, Mike had to wave goodbye to gambling, but then he was compelled back in poker playing to help a childhood friend ‘Worm’ to repay his debts. The twist and turns would leave anyone biting his nails.

6) The Gambler

The Gambler is an ultimate crime drama released in 2014. It is based on the movie with the same name released in 1974 starring James Caan. Here, Mark Wahlberg plays the lead role of a literature professor and gambler. He lost big to the Mr. Lee (owner of a local casino) and Baraka (gangster). He got merely seven days to repay them. When refused by his mother to help with money he had to turn to Frank (loan shark). It definitely runs short of practicality and strong grounds but bears a serious message. To conclude, we have to agree it is still a great entertaining movie!

7) Owning Mahowny

This 2003 movie is based on a true story. Dan Mahowny (24 years old) is the youngest assistant manager of the Canadian Imperial Bank. However, he has a secret; he is addicted to gambling. In order to keep up his gambling stakes, he has started to embezzle his bank – to the extent of 10 million dollars within 18 months. Soon enough, he gets paid for all his frauds. One might find the movie plot troubling, but it is truly engaging with a serious lesson!

8) Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Based on the novel ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas’ by Hunter S. Thompson the film reveals the dark side of the 1990s’ American society. It was released in 1998. The plot revolves around an eccentric journalist Raoul Duke and his maniac lawyer Dr. Gonzo heading to Las Vegas to cover the Mint 400 motorcycle race. Things get interestingly weird after that. They bump into several superb and weird characters – police, hitchhikers, racers, gamblers, etc.

9) The Cooler

Sometimes, bad luck changes fortune for good. The Cooler, released in 2003 portrays a professional loser Bernie Lootz who finally found a way to monetize his strange ability to lose. Bernie gets to restore the house edge by shifting his bad luck on to other players, thus playing the role of a cooler. Overall, it is a fun movie to watch!

10) Casino Royale

A James Bond gambling movie surely does worth a place in this list. How can one forget the poker game at Casino Royale in Montenegro? This is the first time 007 is going to participate in a high-stakes poker game to stop banker Le Chiffre from winning and funding terrorism. In the final hand, with 115 million dollars at stake, it gets simply intense. Le Chiffre beats all with three Ace, but then Bond succeeds overall with a straight flush!

The list doesn’t end here. There are movies like Mr. Lucky, Hard Eight, Croupier, The Hustler that surely entertains all the gambling aficionados! Don’t miss the opportunity to enjoy 10 Best Gambling Movies of All Time!

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